rear surround question

earnest poole
earnest poole Posts: 22
edited April 2002 in Technical/Setup
I've got the option for a rear surround but I dont know wich speaker will fill this spot the best.what do you think.
  • receiver Denon AVR-2802
  • DVD Sony DVP- NS700P
  • Front RT 800i
  • Center CS 400i
  • Surrounds RT 35i
Post edited by earnest poole on

Comments

  • juice21
    juice21 Posts: 1,866
    edited April 2002
    i had rt25i's when i was running the exact same speaker set-up. it sounded good. i have since upgraded the 35i's to fx1000's, and 'stacked' the 35's on my 800's up front (see sysytem showcase) & kept the 25's as rear surrounds. your best option may be to upgrade the 35's to fx500's and move the 35's to rear surrounds. depends on how much HT vs. 5-channel audio you listen to, and what your preference for a rear speaker is. if you prefer direct radiating, either the 25 or 35 will be fine. i found that the 25's were a great solution since they could be nicely mounted via the omnimounts polk has on this site.
  • petrym
    petrym Posts: 1,912
    edited April 2002
    EP,

    I had a similar question when I was putting in my system. The direct radiating 25's I had originally bought didn't fill out the room as I had hoped so I moved to the side-firing f/x300i pairing for the rear surround function. They provided a larger sound field than the 25's did and I'm happy I switched. The secret is to let your ears decide what is best for your setup.

    Mike

    L&R -- RT 800i
    Center -- CS 245i (space limited, I wanted the 400)
    Rears -- F/X300i
    Sub -- PSW 450
  • scottvamp
    scottvamp Posts: 3,277
    edited April 2002
    I went with the cs245i. Absolutly no regrets. The cs400i would have went well with my front center cs400, but it was just a little to much for a rear center. Unless you use it alot for multi-surround music then it would hardly ever even make enough noise for the value. Since you are going direct with your side surrounds and I just go with another rt35i, you can not get a better match with that one. (IMO);)
  • elsid88
    elsid88 Posts: 38
    edited April 2002
    I agree with Juice.

    I currently have the fx500i's as surrounds and the RT35i's for my surround back.

    They have good full sound and match well with the 500's. Plus you never no when you will have movies come out that will be 7.1 discrete which then would make obsolete a center channel speaker being used as your surround back.

    Of course it still depends on what you want to do. Personally when I am entertaining guest, the 7CH Stereo is quite nice thanks to the 35's.

    Good luck...

    Tom...

    ______________
    Toshiba 57HX81
    Panasonic RP-56
    Monster MPHTS3500
    Monster MPHTS2500
    Denon AVR-4800
    Denon POA-5200
    RT1000i's (L/R)
    CS400i (C)
    FX 500i's(SL/SR)
    RT35i's (SBL/SBR)
    PSW650
  • scottvamp
    scottvamp Posts: 3,277
    edited April 2002
    I am not sure you want to drop $500 bucks for a center rear sulotion. But ya that would surely work.
    never no when you will have movies come out that will be 7.1 discrete which then would make obsolete a center channel speaker being used as your surround back.
    I really do not see any discrete 7.1 movies coming out in the next several years. And even to utalize it you would have to have 7.1 reciever.
    6.1 will not be absolete for a really long time. Say maybe the next decade when something takes over dvd. It is like saying because of DVD-A that CD's are now absolete.
    Ya, I am a 6.1 junky!:D
  • earnest poole
    earnest poole Posts: 22
    edited April 2002
    Who knows the best place to pick up a brand new set of the fx 500's. My local cc is all out and none of the other local stores have polks.:D
  • scottvamp
    scottvamp Posts: 3,277
    edited April 2002
    try www.crutchfield.com
    doubled boxed
    2 day shipping
    30 day no question asked return
    great cust. service
    If you are first timer email me and I can get $25 off purchase
    scottvamp1@yahoo.com
  • seaslug
    seaslug Posts: 23
    edited April 2002
    Earnest,

    I'm in the same predicament, with pretty much the same system (I have an Onkyo TX-DS797 and a PSW450 sub in addition to the 800i's, the 400i, and the 35i's). Since I only have six powered channels and don't want to spend the money for an additional amp, I'm leaning toward the CS245i. I have looked at the 15i's, the 25i's, and the 35i's, but they are typcially only sold as a pair, so this would not be very cost-effective since only one of the speakers could actually be powered by the receiver. I'm interested to hear how your system comes together, as I will probably be making a final decision within a month's time.:D
    "Je pense, donc, je suis." -- Rene Descartes
    "The unexamined life is not worth living." -- Socrates
  • nascarmann
    nascarmann Posts: 1,464
    edited April 2002
    Welcome seaslug to the forum!

    What part of 10EC ya from neighbor?;)
    Oh, the bottle has been to me, my closes friend, my worse enemy!
  • OrangeToupee
    OrangeToupee Posts: 488
    edited April 2002
    There are F/X500i's, as well as F/X300i's, currently being sold on ebay; check it out. I'm with seaslug, in terms of filling out that sixth (rear center) channel with a CS245i.
  • seaslug
    seaslug Posts: 23
    edited April 2002
    I'm from K-Town. Go Big Orange!!! How 'bout you, nascarmann?
    "Je pense, donc, je suis." -- Rene Descartes
    "The unexamined life is not worth living." -- Socrates
  • nascarmann
    nascarmann Posts: 1,464
    edited April 2002


    Kingsport:)GO VOLS!
    Oh, the bottle has been to me, my closes friend, my worse enemy!
  • nascarmann
    nascarmann Posts: 1,464
    edited April 2002
    Oh yah, shack's from K-town!
    Oh, the bottle has been to me, my closes friend, my worse enemy!
  • seaslug
    seaslug Posts: 23
    edited April 2002
    If I purchase a CS245i as a rear surround, I will probably have to mount it on a speaker stand directly behind the couch in my home theater setup. Any recommendation on height and distance?
    "Je pense, donc, je suis." -- Rene Descartes
    "The unexamined life is not worth living." -- Socrates
  • shack
    shack Posts: 11,154
    edited April 2002
    nascarmann - Allright - Tennessee is well represented here. There is me, and NashvilleTitans (he hasn't been around for a couple of weeks), you (As soon as you move back to "God's country" ) and now seaslug.

    Welcome to the forum seaslug! He must be smart because he has Polk speakers and quotes famous French philosophers....I think therefore I am...I took a little french back in high school (only because the teacher was a real looker!) .

    seaslug - btw the cs245i is a very nice speaker and you can get one at Crutchfield for $149. I use it as my front center since the 400 is too big for my application. I've mated it with the rt55i which has the same drivers and tweeters as your 400, 800s and 35s. I don't think you will be disappointed using this as your rear center. You better decide soon as I don't think this one will be around much longer and the new csi30 has a different tweeter. This may not make much difference when used for the rear but the 245 should be a seamless match.
    Any recomendation on height and distance?

    How far behind you couch is your back wall? If that is possible then about 6 feet high would be good if you have some space between the wall and the couch. If the couch is backed up to the wall then you could still mount it on the wall and tilt it down slightly towards the listening area.
    "Just because you’re offended doesn’t mean you’re right." - Ricky Gervais

    "For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who don't believe, no proof is possible." - Stuart Chase

    "Consistency requires you to be as ignorant today as you were a year ago." - Bernard Berenson
  • seaslug
    seaslug Posts: 23
    edited April 2002
    Shack,

    Thanks for the reply. Part of my problem is that I don't really have a back wall. The living room in my townhouse is connected to the dining area, and my wife-to-be would jerk a knot in my tail if I tried to wall-mount a speaker over the dining room table. That's why I'm going to have to settle for a speaker stand, and it's pretty much going to be right behind the couch. I know this is not an ideal setup, but I REALLY want 6.1 sound--afterall, I did spend a lot of money on a 6.1 receiver! I'm trying to convince myself that having the rear surround directly behind my head will not ruin the effect. I'm thinking about a 36" stand, so at least the tweeter will be above ear-level in the seated position.:confused:
    "Je pense, donc, je suis." -- Rene Descartes
    "The unexamined life is not worth living." -- Socrates
  • scottvamp
    scottvamp Posts: 3,277
    edited April 2002
    Hi, just check out my system showcase. I made a hanging speaker mount for my rear cs245i. The placement is just right also. Set it up so that I can angle it for just the right spot.:cool:
  • joe logston
    joe logston Posts: 882
    edited April 2002
    seaslug wecome to the forum,

    you can hang the rear speaker from the ceiling with 2 small poles just the right hight & distance from you and run your speaker wire in one of the poles, and paint them the same as your walls.
    . rt-7 mains
    rt-20p surounds
    cs-400i front center
    cs-350 ls rear center
    2 energy take 5, efects
    2- psw-650 , subs
    1- 15" audiosource sub

    lets all go to the next ces.